Rs 37 crore spent on 19 rest houses in Mandi from Jal Jeevan Mission funds during BJP regime: Agnihotri

Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri today said a sum of Rs 37.58 crore had been spent on the construction of 19 rest houses in Dharampur and Seraj Assembly segments of Mandi district from the Jal Jeevan Mission (JMM) during the previous BJP regime despite there being no mandate for it.

Replying to a query by Dharampur MLA Chandershekhar, Agnihotri, who holds the charge of Irrigation and Public Health Department, informed that a sum of Rs 1,227 crore, out of the total amount of Rs 6,395 crore, approved for Himachal under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) by the Centre was still pending. He said Rs 600-crore works had already been completed in Himachal from the state's funds under the JJM for which the money from the Centre is still awaited.

"Twelve rest houses, worth Rs 26.11 crore were made in Dharampur Assembly constituency and seven in Seraj segment for Rs 11.47 crore in Mandi district from the JJM despite there being no provision for it in the project," he informed. He said the Centre had said that this amount spent on rest houses would have to be borne by the state government. 

"Work on two rest houses is still incomplete while Rs 1.42 crore is being spent by the government on maintenance and staff of these 19 rest houses in Dharampur and Seraj alone. Now no rest house can be made anywhere in the state without the Cabinet’s approval," he informed the House.

Agnihotri said a sum of Rs 6,395 crore was sanctioned to Himachal under JJM out of which only a sum of Rs 5,167 crore was received from the Centre. "A sum of Rs 1,227 crore is still pending for which I have approached the Centre several times," he said. A total of 1,747 schemes were sanctioned out of which work is still under way on 1,100 schemes," he said.

He stated that schemes worth Rs 1,441 crore were sanctioned for Dharampur constituency alone. Out of this, schemes worth Rs 603 crore stand completed while schemes worth Rs 849 crore are incomplete. "We are in dialogue with the Centre and I am hopeful that the remaining Rs 849 crore will be sanctioned by Centre," said Agnihotri.

The minister said the previous BJP regime had sent in writing to the GOI that the JJM was complete, thinking that the entire amount of Rs 6,395 crore would be released. "A survey was undertaken by the Centre as it was probably dissatisfied by works under the JMM across the country and it is then that this remaining amount of Rs 1,227 crore was withheld," he said.